Homemade Body Wash - Keep Scary Out Of Your Shower
Friday, September 23, 2011 
Our Homemade Lavender-Lemongrass Body WashWhat do you put on your body every day? By the time I’ve finished my morning routine I’ve used shampoo, conditioner, body wash, face wash, toner, moisturizer and sunscreen for my face, and lotion for my body. Somehow, it took me close to a year before I started wondering what the heck was actually in those bottles in my shower. Isn't it odd that we’ve become so conscious of what we put inside our bodies, and somehow managed not to give any thought about what we were putting on them?
All of that changed a few weeks ago when a friend recommended The Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep Database which rates products according to the chemicals they contain and how harmful they are. I searched the items in my bathroom and found that all of them except for what I put on my face (Alba Botanica and Kiss My Face) had a moderate to high hazard score. Scary!
I decided to replace some of the items in our routine with safer, natural products - preferably something homemade (well, yeah!). The first to run out was body wash. We had been using Dove's Go Fresh Bodywash which is a 5 on the 0-10 hazard rating system. I am a huge fan of a nice creamy bodywash and an exfoliating pouf and felt a tinge of dismay thinking about the future of my suds, sure that I would have to give up this little luxury for a bar of something filmy and a washcloth. Little did I know that I was about to make the best bodywash EVER. I’m serious.
I searched out different recipes and ingredients that would be good for my skin -not so easy when you have been fighting a lifelong battle against the frustrating combo of hypersensitive skin and acne. I went with an infusion of oats and rosemary to soothe and tone, coconut oil to moisturize because we had it in the house and it’s one of the few oils that doesn’t make me break out, and the essential oils of chamomile, lavender, and lemongrass for their properties and scent.
Scrapple and I have been using it for about 2 weeks now and will never go back! Actually, I think he'd use whatever I put in there, but at least I'd never go back! It smells amazing, produces a great lather, gets you clean, and actually leaves you moisturized. It’s an amazing shave gel for legs (not so sure how it would fare on Scrapple’s stubble) and Scrapple's been using it as shampoo (again, I think he'd use anything). I should also mention that this batch that made 24oz using all organic (and local where available) ingredients cost only $4.50 to make - half the price of the scary stuff! Here's the breakdown:
Give it a try! Swap out oils and infusion ingredients to make a recipe that’s perfect for your skin. This would be a fun project to try with kids too.
-
1 Tbs steel cut oats (optional - to infuse)
-
1 sprig of rosemary (optional - to infuse)
-
1 c. distilled water
-
1 Tsp citric acid (to prevent bacterial growth in your bodywash)
-
2 Tbs coconut oil (can swap out with olive, grapeseed, almond, jojoba, apricot kernel or any other oil)
-
1 Tbsp honey
-
1-1/2 c. liquid castile soap (I used Dr Bronner’s)
-
1 tsp guar gum (you can find it in most markets that carry natural foods with the Bob’s Red Mill grains)
-
30 drops essential oils (your preference - I used a blend of lavender, chamomile, and lemongrass)
1. Boil water in a kettle and once boiling pour over the oats and rosemary (or whatever you decide to infuse). Cover and let sit for an hour, then strain to remove oats and rosemary bits from your infusion.
2. In a bowl whisk your oil, honey, infusion, and citric acid together.
3. Sprinkle in the guar gum, whisking to combine, and then immediately afterward whisk in the castile soap (if you wait too long the guar gum will thicken and you’ll have clumps) until blended and smooth.
4. Drop in your essential oils and fold in with a spoon or spatula. Store the mixture in a bottle that you have sterilized (opaque is best) out of direct sunlight and shake before each use.
Find our Handmade, Organic Milk Soaps in our Online Farm Shop!
PLEASE NOTE: As this recipe only contains mild natural preservatives (citric acid) and has not been created by a chemist, you may want to store the finished body wash in your refrigerator or make a batch small enough to use within 3-4 days. It is very important that you sterilize (boiling water or the dishwasher will do) all implements that will be used to avoid introducing any bacteria into your bodywash. We personally have not had any issues with bacterial contamination and are still using a bottle from a large batch that was made over 6 months ago that has never been refrigerated.
For more natural skincare recipes and homesteading tips, follow us on facebook!
Next up will be body lotion - let me know if you have a great recipe you’d like to share or any other tips related to making your own body care products. I'm especially interested in eventually trying to make soaps from rendered animal fats (I don't think we're going to have an olive grove or coconut trees on the farm) and would love any info you might have on that as well!
That's all for now - keep it clean!
95 Comments | Email Article | Share Article | Permalink | tagged Body Wash, Skin Care, Skincare, Sweetbreads 
Reader Comments (95)
Can i substitute Tea tree oil for the citric acid, and emulsifying wax for the guar gum?
Just curious :)
Hi Leigha!
I think its pretty safe to give either or both a try!
I know that tea tree oil is a great antiseptic, antibacterial, and antifungal, but don't know how much you would need to use to have the same effect as the citric acid so you'd have to research that one a bit.
As far as using the emulsifying wax as a replacement for the guar gum, it would most likely work, but would completely change the end consistency of the bodywash. As the recipe stands, the guar gum gives the bodywash a thick creamy feel. I imagine that your end result would be much thinner and less silky (there isn't a ton of oil in this recipe to give you that without the guar).
Good luck :) Please let me know how it turns out!
So excited to try this, thanks! Would love to see the lotion recipe as well :)
This looks great - can't wait to try it out. I am also keen to get a community projects onto making things like this and it looks so easy. Also looks quite easy to have variations on the central theme with the oil bases and the essential oils too.
Great DIY and safe receipe. Have been going sulfate free and chemical free in all household products for a year but delayed giving up my beloved body wash. . Its amazing how
easy it is to go chemical free. Wondering what type of container you put yours in.
Alexis - The first time around I just rinsed out the plastic squeeze container that my old dove body wash was in and reused that! After awhile the flip lid started to fall off, so now I have it in a glass pump bottle (also repurposed from a Dr. Hauschka lotion).
Sue - You can totally play around with the oils! It would be easy to customize for your particular skin type with a base oil that you've already had a good experience with and change up the essential oils as well for either medicinal purposes or scent preference.
Let me know how it works out for you once you make a batch!
- Sweetbreads
Where might I find citric acid?
This looks great! I have really sensitive skin and a lanolin allergy, so I am always looking for something gentle to use on my skin!
Where did you get the citric acid at? Having a hard time finding it to buy in store, wanted to avoid buying it online if possible. Thanks!
I have some powdery citric acid for cheesemaking - is that the kind you use?
If so, I bought mine at a homebrew store.
I used this recipe, but used the baby mild castile soap. It does not lather. Is it because I used the baby mild. My husband says that he doesn't feel clean unless it lathers.
Debbie and Sarahbella: I used the citric acid powder I had on hand for cheesemaking. I bought mine online at New England Cheesemaking Supply, but I've heard that it can also be found in health stores. I would call first just to make sure!
Leah: I also used the scentless baby mild and have not had any issues with lathering yet. Are you using the wash solo, or with a puff, sponge or loofa? To create lots of lather, I use the wash with a bath puff but I'm sure a sponge, loofa, or washcloth would have the same effect. I would try whisking an additional 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the liquid castille soap to the body wash you've made. It may also be the water used in the mixture - if your tap water is very hard, that could be the culprit. If you think that may be the case, try using some distilled water in the next batch. I hope it works out for you!
- Sweetbreads
I do live where there is very hard water. I will try the distilled next time. Thanks!
I was wondering what your thought are about using this on a baby? If I can use this soap for my whole family, than it would definitely make things easier! Thanks!
This looks intriguing! I'm trying to ween myself off of synthetic chemicals as much as possible, and this would fit the bill. The only difficulty is finding guar gum where I live. Could I substitute xanthan gum instead?
I am so excited to try this. I've made lots of homemade bath and body care and laundry detergents lately and love it. I too had trouble finding citric acid but finally found it online at swanson vitamins they also have essential oils too plus are cheeper than most other places i found online.
Hi. Where did you buy your Dr. Bonner's? $34/gallon is a great price and I can't seem to find anything comparable. Also, is it 1/2 cup of Dr. Bonner's per batch of body wash or is it 1 & 1/2 cups? Thank you for your time. I am excited to try this. I am still looking for guar gum? p.s. to the person looking for citric acid....I found some at Sprouts Grocery store (Mesa, AZ)
I can't use Dr. Bronner's or Kirk's. Is there a substitute? Also, I have VERY dry, SUPER-sensitive skin and I'm just starting to make my own personal care products. Are there specific herbs/oils you'd recommend for this recipe given that information? Thanks for posting this!
Citric acid is available at my local grocery store close to pickling salt and canning jars.
I LOVE the idea of making my own body wash! I made this recipe a week ago and we like it a lot so far. It leaves our skin really soft and I've not felt the need for lotion afterward. I purchased lavender Dr. Bronner's and we LOVE the scent! I wish it didn't separate, though, but I also forgot my stick blender was broken when I was making it. A working one would've helped. ;oP I found 1.5 tsp. of guar gum made it more the consistency I prefer--a little thicker.
From what I've read, xanthan gum could probably substitute for guar gum. All these products are available at Whole Foods. I found citric acid and xanthan gum at a local Amish store too.
What's the shelf-life of this body wash? I've read conflicting information about citric acid being a preservative. Actually, I've read that there are NO natural preservatives. Thoughts? Have you any obvious problems with preservation? I'm curious about not adding water and therefore not needing a preservative. How would it turn out?
You didn't respond to my post but you deleted it?!
My soap has deflated after a couple weeks. No one can use that much shower gel in a week or two. My mason jars are less than half full. Do you not have any advice? If not, please don't mislead your readers.
Hi composerk,
It appears we never received a comment from you before. We're sorry your soap didn't turn out well. We have made multiple batches and known others to do the same without any deflation. We have found that hard water can have adverse effects. do you have hard or highly mineralized water?
As to the volume of soap, you could cut the recipe proportionally to get less if you find that it's too much. This batch size works pretty well for the two of us. Hope that helps.
Poor results. Even with added essential oils, the smell of 'unscented' castille soap was apparent. I didn't like the consistency at all. Looked creamy in the photo, but it yeilded a liquidy motor-oil looking batch. Kind of a waste of time with the exception that I found more uses for coconut oil.
I am now looking into melting bar soap and creating a more lotion-like body wash with that. I think THAT will come out the way people would expect a home made body wash to be like.
Thanks for the response. I do have hard water, but I used filtered. As this was my 3rd or 4th trial of shower gel, I'm think I'm over trying to concoct my own. They all smell bad in the end and are not as moisturizing as I'd hoped. I have sensitive dry skin and our hard water doesn't help. Your recipe looked the best until I had the deflation. I have repurposed it and it works great coupled with hot vinegar to clean my shower and doesn't offend the nose like other toxic cleaners.
Hi Kim,
We're sorry you weren't happy with the outcome. We've had tremendously positive responses from users of the recipe, so I think it is what a lot of people are looking for. Of course, it can't suit everyone. Good luck with melting the bar soap, we've never done that, it would be interesting to hear how it turns out.
First batch was great made to the above recipe, Just starting to make second batch this time useing Dr Bronner's Lavender soap. Don't understand why people have problems with such a simple recipe.
Follow-Up: I had to throw away about half a batch of this body wash. It started making my daughter and I itch in the nether regions. :o( I don't know if it was an ingredient (I doubt it or I'd think it wouldn't have taken 2-3 weeks before we had issues, but who knows?) or the lack of preservative. I've learned more about making my own beauty products since I made this and there are some other precautions I could try too. I may try this again after I get some preservative. In the meantime, Dr. Bronner's liquid castile soap is GREAT as a body wash just as is!
I just made this using the rose scented Dr. Bronner's. I forewent the essential oils, oats, and rosemary as the castile soap I chose is wonderfully scented. It is extremely light and fluffy! It feels so nice on the skin. I whipped it with my cake mixer so that the guar gum would not clump and did it a few sprinkles at a time. I was able to fill about a dozen mason 16oz mason jars full to the brim. It made a lot. I look forward to using this recipe for life. Thanks for posting. I found citric acid in the canning section at walmart and guar gum at the local grocery store in the bob's mills section.
Hi Kim, I'm so glad you're enjoying it! I'm going to have to give the rose scented Dr. Bronner's a try for the next batch (love rose!). I just wanted to let you know that you may experience some deflation as another reader has. This recipe should really only make 24oz of body wash, but I think if you use a mixer to beat it instead of whisking by hand, it froths up much more... It will still feel just as wonderful and froth in the shower though :)
Thanks for reading!
- Sweetbreads
Thanks for the inspiration. You are so right about worrying about what goes into our body, but not worrying about what goes on it. Skin is our biggest organ. The price certainly stacks up too. (found you via stumble upon)
@kim - {just made rose scented body wash} Did you use the above recipe and get that many 16oz jars out of it? How will you store the jars? How long do you think they will 'keep'?
i just found you via pinterest. thanks for the recipe. i'm looking forward to trying it!
How do you get 1 gallon of the soap for $34? It's $76 on the Dr Bronner website
We found it at a local food store at that price. If you Google for 1 gallon you can find prices around $36 online, but look out for shipping and taxes. Amazon has it for $44. Looks like you can get a gallon shipped, after-tax for around $50, which would increase your costs by about $1.50 vs. what I came to above. Still a meaningful savings and you know what's going into your bodywash.
Used this recipe as a base for my first homemade body wash, just fantastic! My baby girl loves to eat her bath bubbles :) now she can actually eat them. :D
Have you than made a cream also? Haven't found it on your blog...
Have you also tried to make a soap in bars?
Admire your life style.
Cheers!
Awe, thanks! I can picture your happy bath-baby now :)
We just made goat's milk soap in bars for the first time today, we'll see how it turns out in a few weeks! Blog post sure to come.
Just tried it and love this recipe! Thank you for sharing
I've been using this recipe for a couple months now and love love love it! I've never had any issues, off smells or rancicity with it. My boyfriend loves it (one of the few home-made products he does love) and all my friends comment on how nice it is as a hand wash at the bathroom sink. I experiment with different combos of essential oils and infusions and haven't some up with anything bad yet! Thanks so much Little Seed.
Awe, thanks Erin and Trang, glad you're enjoying it!
I love this recipe! But I do have one question...where is that soap pump from?? I've been looking for one just like that!
I'm concerned that readers will not realize that a formula like this is not shelf stable or safe unless either refridgerated or used within about 3-4 days. I noticed a few comments alerting you to the preservation issue, but none were addressed. Bacteria can be life threatening - there is no commercial product regardless of the ingredients - that is as potentially hazardous to your health as bacteria. Dr. Bronners is safe "as is" - it has been tested for the correct quantity of ingredients that will not grow bacteria, mold, viruses, etc. But once you add other ingredients - especially water - you need to reformulate in order to be safe. This recipe is not safe.
Hi Sue,
Thank you for voicing your concern. We've been making this body wash for almost a year now, never storing in the refrigerator, and are currently using a bottle that is from a batch made 6 months ago with no negative effects. That said, we agree that we are not chemists, that this recipe has not been formulated by a professional, and that, as with many home made skincare recipes, there is the possibility for bacterial contamination. We have added a note to the recipe to alert our readers of this possibility and help them make an informed decision when it comes to making and using this recipe.
It was just recommended that I try using colloidal silver as a preservative in my homemade products. I made a body wash I found on a website using Castile soap and water. After making a bunch up I came across several blogs expressing concern over bacterial growth. I'm still not sure the exact measurements required of the colloidal silver but from what I read it doesn't sound like it requires much. I would love any feedback anyone can offer.
I was just wondering if you could say a little bit about why you choose to add all of these various things to dr. Bronners soap. I have been making the switch to natural products and when I read this I became curious as to the point behind making this recipe vs. just using the Castile soap. Please let me know your thoughts, I like to have understanding behind the "why" of most things I choose to do. Thanks a lot!
I am a pediatric nurse practitioner and have spent some time in pediatric dermatology and I would highly suggest that if you are going to use this for your sons eczema that you NOT put any lavender or other essential oils in this product as they can irritate the skin and make his eczema worse.
@ Ashley - I disagree with your comment about lavender essential oil. I just took a course in Lavender essential oils by Robert Tisserand today as a matter of fact, and he covered all the current scientific data on lavender and any side effects and Contraindications - there are none.
The class had loads of scientific references, including The Complete German Commission E Monographs (Blumenthal et al 1998).
The class also covered the physical, mental and emotional benefits of lavender - including Wound healing & skin cancer prevention.
As a nurse, I am sure you base your opinions on sound, peer-reviewed scientific research - can you site studies to back your comment that lavender can irritate the skin and/or make eczema worse?
@Sue -
I am not a nurse, but I can tell you that many essential oils, including lavender, cause major irritation to my sensitive skin.
I am speaking from personal experience. You should always be very careful when exposing someone with sensitive or compromised skin to new oils and/ or chemicals.
You can never tell what someone will react badly to, and it is always better to be safe than sorry.
@Ashley, Sue and Sam and anyone else, if you are going to use essential oils on your skin make sure they are therapeutic grade or higher (medical grade). Most tout the benefits of lavender oil (which I personally love) so people go to their local grocery store and buy some. The only problem with that is that most lavender oil found in the store will be cut with Lavendin which counteracts a lot of the benefits of Lavender. I personally use Young Living essential oils. They cost a little more than other varieties but the smell and quality is so much higher. That being said, everyone's skin is different and will react differently do different oils so you need to find what works best for you!
"make sure they are therapeutic grade or higher (medical grade)."
There is no such thing as therapeutic grade or medical grade essential oils.
There is no grading system on the PLANET for essential oils.
These are made up marketing terms designed to fool consumers. This practice is very common among brands sold via the Multi-level-marketing style of retail. http://www.cropwatch.org/Therapeutic%20Grade%20Essential%20Oils%20corrected.pdf
Sue
Just made a run and could not wait to try it out. I am very impressed! I did not use any essential oils, but the slight scent of the honey and coconut oil are very pleasant. (I plan to use oils in my next run. I have used them in several things before and have had no problems even on my toddlers' sensitive skin.)
The only thing I was concerned about was the consistency. It is a lot thinner than I expected. This isn't a bad thing, I just wanted to make sure I hadn't missed something.
Thanks so much for sharing! I am very excited to see how this body wash works for my son's eczema.